Home Page banner.cb3cartoon.
Check back prior to the 2008 season for a preview and a program outlook.
Click here for Carolina baseball analysis.

Off the cuff: That Carolina loss at home against Duke seemed like a foregone conclusion after the first few minutes.

Some might even say that the Tar Heels looked a little out of it before the jump ball. They slowly and stiffly walked out on the court during introductions. Perhaps they were trying to be cool in such a high-pressure game but they showed no emotion and, as my mother might have said, "they looked like dead lice was falling off them."

A physical, talented Duke team came out hot and got the Heels in a hole early. With Bacot on the bench much of the first half, it looked like a mismatch on the court.

Carolina did have a nice run to make the halftime score respectable but then they watched A.J. Griffin hit four shots in a row to basically end chances for a Carolina comeback.

Brady Manek, who kept Carolina in it in the first half, said, "They shot well from the start. That kind of got us out of a rhythm offensively but, you know, Armando getting those two fouls definitely took a toll on us early on."

He said he was proud that the team fought back. "You know, we fought hard in the first half after the first five minutes or so. I mean, we were chipping away at it. We were playing hard. We're playing well. You know it was a long game and a hard game. You know, we played the best we could, we just didn't come out on top. We didn't execute well. Didn't get stops. But we all definitely played hard."

It's true I suppose but Carolina's results were ugly. The way Duke was hitting shots, Carolina would have lost even if they hadn't played ugly.

It's a little scary to think that this Carolina team will play in Coach K's last game at Cameron. If the Heels lost by 20 in this one, what will be the Vegas line in that one.

But Carolina just needs to worry about Clemson right now.

Duke 87, Tar Heels 67
Blue Devils , Coach K get the last laugh

Duke, playing Coach Mike Krzyzewski's final game in Chapel Hill, hit North Carolina early, then survived a Carolina run and finally hit the Tar Heels at the beginning of the second half to win going away, 87-67. (2/5)

The Blue Devils got out to an 11-2 lead before then Carolina's Armando Bacot picked up his second foul. With Bacot on the bench, Duke continued its 26-6 run to take a 31-8 lead midway through the first half.

After Bacot returned, the Tar Heels, behind Brady Manek outside and Bacot inside, went on a 20-8 run to close out the half. Manek had nine while Bacot had eight during the run that ended with Duke still up 11 at 39-28.

But the Blue Devils, more specifically A.J. Griffin, came out in the second half and pretty much ended Carolina's chances in the first three minutes.

Coach K said he didn't say anything magical at the half. "I just told them that we won the first 12 and they won the next eight. If they start out the first four like the last eight, they're going to beat us. But if we start out the first four like we did the first 12 then we're going to win," he said.

Not only did Duke play strong defense to start the second half but Griffin couldn't miss, hitting four in a row, including a pair of threes. Before Carolina got its footing, the Devils' 12-0 run had the visitors right back up to a 23-point lead at 51-28.

It never got closer than 16 the rest of the way as the lead ballooned to 28 late.

"They punched us in the mouth at the beginning of the game and at the beginning of the second half," UNC coach Hubert Davis said. "We were playing catch up pretty much the whole game."

After Bacot picked up his two quick fouls early, teammate Leaky Black took over manning Duke freshman sensation Paolo Banchero, who had led the Devils averaging 18 points per game but finished this game with just 13 and it took 14 shots to get it.

But Duke has so many weapons and this night the Devils turned to freshman Griffin, a high school teammate of UNC's R.J. Davis, who scored a season-high 27 points.

Carolina was led by Manek's 21 points, 15 of which came in the first half. Caleb Love, whose best games of the season last year came in wins against Duke, had an off game, missing four of five three-point attempts and was just three of 10 shooting overall with four turnovers.

He wasn't the only cold shooter for Carolina as the team finished shooting just 41 percent from the floor while Duke shot a sizzling 58 percent.

North Carolina, now 16-7 overall and 8-4 in the ACC, plays at Clemson Tuesday. Duke holds on to first in the ACC with a 19-3 overall and 9-2 league record.

Box Score


UNC's Brady Manek, here dunking, was one of the few bright spots in Duke's victory in Chapel Hill. (UNC Sports Information photo by Jeffrey A. Camarati.)


Check out the other game articles.
Read my Tar Heels' season preview on by clicking here.

© 2020 CB3media Cary, NC